Sometimes anthologies like this can be spotty; a few good stories and a lot of mediocre ones. This one has a better than average number of good ones and a few really good ones. There were only two what I’d call duds in the thing, meaning they just didn’t work for me. Worth the money to buy it, and the time to read it.

I’d meant to re-read Burroughs’ The Princess of Mars before I read this, but didn’t get to it and got impatient so I went right ahead with this. I remembered enough of the original story and the over-all scenario Burroughs wrote to be able to appreciate the stories, plus each story has a short introduction by the editor recalling the book and situation that the story is based on, and that helped. Most of the stories seemed right in line with the Barsoom (Mars) the original author created.

One of the stories, which I expected to be a weak entry, I found especially thought-provoking: Peter S. Beagle’s The Ape-Man of Mars”. Yes, it’s Tarzan, who finds himself transported to Barsoom. Another dandy is Joe Landsdale’s “The Metal Men of Mars” which opens the anthology. But I’ll not go through the whole set of stories, I’ll leave that to you. Very enjoyable, indeed, and a collection I’ll almost certainly re-read.

Table of Contents:Foreword by Tamora Pierce
Introduction by John Joseph Adams
The Metal Men of Mars by Joe R. Lansdale – illustrated by Gregory Manchess
Three Deaths by David Barr Kirtley – illustrated by Charles Vess
The Ape-Man of Mars by Peter S. Beagle – illustrated by Jeremy Bastian
A Tinker of Warhoon by Tobias S. Buckell – illustrated by Chrissie Zullo
Vengeance of Mars by Robin Wasserman – illustrated by Misako Rocks
Woola’s Song by Theodora Goss – illlustrated by Joe Sutphin
The River Gods of Mars by Austin Grossman – illustrated by Meinert Hansen
The Bronze Man of Mars by L. E. Modesitt, Jr. – illustrated by Tom Daly
A Game of Mars by Genevieve Valentine – illustrated by Molly Crabapple
Sidekick of Mars by Garth Nix – illustrated by Mike Cavallaro
The Ghost of the Superstition Mountains by Chris Claremont – illustrated by John Picacio
The Jasoom Project by S. M. Stirling – illustrated by Jeff Carlisle
Coming of Age in Barsoom by Catherynne M. Valente – illustrated by Michael Wm. Kaluta
The Death Song of Dwar Guntha by Jonathan Maberry – illustrated by Daren Bader
Appendix: A Barsoomian Gazetteer, or, Who’s Who and What’s What on Mars by Richard A. Lupoff

This has been on my radar and I’m glad to see a review of it from someone I know online. I’m even more interested in it now. I was already pretty interested in the author list and I’ve liked Adams’ anthologies in the past.

Frank, thanks for the tip. Patti, Beagle he has written a lot of novels and short stories, including some pretty well-known fantasy. A fine and Private Place was the first of his I read. You may have read We Never Talk About My Brother, a short story collection, or one of his other ss singles or collections.